Black News

3-year old gunned down over a fight on Facebook

The death of a child is always tragic, but this is one of those that really tears at your heart. A graduation at the Detroit Police Academy was dampened by news of the death of a three-year old girl, who was a reminder of the kind of violence that the city is dealing with.

The group was asked to mourn for Amiracle Williams, a 3-year old girl who was shot by a machine gun after a tragedy that could have been easily avoided. Reports are that the entire incident started with a fight on Facebook that spilled into the streets, putting the little girl in a dangerous situation that eventually took her life.

Detroit Police Chief James Craig said that the incident was a serious time for reflection for those who are taking on the somber and dangerous responsibility of protecting American citizens. It also makes the rest of us think about the danger that our children are in when guns are so easily available in our streets. Where are these guns coming from? How does a man get access to a machine gun? These might be other questions that need to be asked after this horrible tragedy.

“When we think about the loss of our young angel, Amiracle Williams, the tragedy of someone so young … we fight for all, we fight for our young,” Craig said.

Four others were wounded in the shooting on Detroit’s east side, Craig said after the ceremony. Amiracle’s mother, 40, father, 47, and sister, 17, were injured in the incident, which took place in front of the Williams’ home on Mogul Street near Hayes. One of the suspects, a 22-year-old black male, was also shot and injured.

Amiracle’s father is believed to have shot one of the victims, Craig said.

A dispute on Facebook culminated in a confrontation outside the Williams residence, where several young women had a physical fight Thursday afternoon, police said. The father, observing the fight, “felt his daughters may have been in some sort of danger and responded by shooting one person at the scene,” Craig said.

After the first shooting, a second individual took out a machine gun and began to fire repeatedly, striking Amiracle and her three family members, he said.